TNAG-0410-FCO40-456-Allegations-of-bribery-and-corruption-in-the-Hong-Kong-polic-1973 — Page 164

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Foreign and Commonwealth Office

London S.W.1

25 October, 1973

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From the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

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Thank you for your letter of 18 October enclosing an extract from the second Blair-Kerr Report concerning the Fugitive Offenders Act. I am sending you a copy of the published report together with a copy of the Governor's speech to the Legislative Council on 17 October in which, amongst other things, he comments on the Blair-Kerr Report.

The first point to make - as Murray MacLehose has indicated in his speech is that the Fugitive Offenders Act would not prevent a person charged with actual corruption from being brought to trial in Hong Kong. I have a great deal of sympathy with Sir Alastair Blair-Kerr's views on Mr. Godber's evasion of prosecution. However, it is the lack of evidence of an extraditable offence, which, together with the failure to hold him in liong Kong, has led to this situation.

As you know the main reason why Mr. Godber cannot be returned to Hong Kong is that the only offence with which he has been charged, namely the possession of unexplained wealth by a public officer, does not constitute an offence under English law. Under the double criminality rule in the Fugitive Offenders Act, return is only possible when the offence concerned is known to the law in both countries.

There is force in the argument that it is illogical that a person may not be extradited for an offence under a Hong Kong law which has been approved by the Government.. However, the double criminality rule is an important element of the Fugitive Offenders Act. When the provisions of the 1967 Act were under consideration in 1966 a great deal of thought was given to the question whether to keep on the 1881 Act provisions in respect of United Kingdom depend- encies and, if not, whether the double criminality rule should operate at the discretion of the Home Secretary, c/% (293α (241)

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